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Disinvestment, oil prices to dominate BJP meet at Nagpur 

Our Political Bureau  
New Delhi, Aug 24: Disinvestment, oil prices and general economic scenario in the country are to figure in BJP's economic resolution at the party's three-day national executive meet beginning Saturday at Nagpur.

"We will have an elaborate economic resolution. You can safely guess the topics we will include into it", BJP General Secretary and official spokesman, Venkiah Naidu told Financial Express on Thursday. He declined to elaborate. However, he gave enough hint that the party will discuss the economic situation in its entirety and also touch upon important areas of concern in the economic resolution.

Both disinvestment and oil prices have begun to bother the government. While the Government is committed to sell PSU shares worth Rs 10,000 crore this fiscal, there is no encouraging sign that it will be able to meet the target. Major ministries like petroleum and natural gas, power, mines and even civil aviation have sought to put spokes into its disinvestment plan.

The party's sister organisation, Swadeshi Jagran Manch, too has been harsh on the government in so far as it has taken a tough stand against what it calls wanton privatisation.

The party has already fielded stalwarts like disinvestment minister, Arun Shourie to allay the SJM fears. Shourie has met SJM leader, S Gurumurthy and others in this connection. Party's economic think tank and Prime Minister's economic advisory council member Jagdish Shettigar, according to party sources, has been told to draft the economic resolution taking into account the SJM sensitivities.

The resolution, at the same time, will send a firm signal to the international community that the government was serious about its economic reforms, including disinvestment of PSUs.

It was all the more important keeping in view the fact that the Prime Minister was visiting US next month for a fortnight.

The resolution is also likely to underscore the point that the government cannot close its eyes to ballooning oil pool account deficit. The only answer to arrest it is to increase petroleum products prices if the international prices of the commodity continued to rise. Petroleum Minister, Ram Naik has already rung an alarm bell before the Prime Minister and has hinted that he would raise the issue in the BJP national executive meet.

Meanwhile, Kashmir is likely to dominate the political resolution. Venkaiah Naidu reiterated on Thursday that the party's stand is that there was no question of a dialogue with Pakistan till it continues with cross-border terrorism and that the issue will come up for a discussion in the BJP meet.

Naidu said home minister LK Advani will give a detail brief about the Kashmir situation and the session will conclude with a speech by Prime Minister, Vajpayee.

Copyright © 2000 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.

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